Fantasy Trap
by Prince-in-Disguise
Summary: Athrun and his friends test drive a virtual reality arcade game, but something goes wrong and the seemingly harmless game soon turns deadly when they become trapped inside it! Post GSD. Main cast: Athrun, Lacus and Kira. Shinn and Meyrin also feature.
1. Chapter 1: The Prelude

**Author's Note:** I would really like to thank _reckless-rage_ for providing the initial plot for this story and for letting me write it! I'm sorry I sat on your idea for so long, but I wanted to do it just right... Anyway, this one's for you. Just think of it as an early birthday present!

**Disclaimer: Gundam Seed and all its characters belong to their respective owners.**

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**Fantasy Trap**

**Chapter 01: The Prelude**

The blaring music and deafening sounds of dozens of different games mangled together to fill their ears as they entered the arcade. Athrun barely heard the noise, though, as he looked over his three companions anxiously – two dark-haired boys and one pink-haired girl. Among the four of them, an uncomfortable silence lurked, still. He wanted the ice broken. He wanted his friends to get along well. It was nothing that could be forced, of course. Athrun was willing to give it time.

"It feels like ages since I've been to a joint like this!" Kira laughed, standing on tiptoe as if trying to drink in every last detail of the lively atmosphere at once.

Athrun had known that if there was any way to set free the kid inside his childhood friend once more, this would be it. It was good to see Kira's playful side again. To be honest, Athrun had been afraid that the prolonged war had extinguished that part of his best friend's personality for good. At Kira's elbow, Lacus craned her neck gracefully to better observe the delighted expression on her beloved's face. She smiled delicately at his reaction to the hypnotic beckoning of the games with their bright lights.

Athrun had considered inviting Meyrin along too, so Lacus – who did not seem to be here for the gaming experience, at least Athrun could not imagine it – would have some company. The two girls seemed to get along really well – they had hit it off ever since their time together on the Archangel.

But he was not sure she would have come along even if he had asked her. Lunamaria had already promised to come, and, according to Shinn, the Hawke siblings had had a rather fiery quarrel over some or other obscure matter. The exact nature of this matter was unknown, but apparently the two sisters were not on speaking terms as of yet. Shinn said that Lunamaria had dismissed it as "women's business" when he pressed her for details. From his limited experience, Athrun knew that that translated roughly into "none of your business" for guys. Whatever had happened between the two sisters, Athrun reasoned that there was going to be enough awkwardness to go around, so he had wisely decided against inviting her.

"I shall buy the tokens," Lacus offered, a sweet, chirping sound, as she made off with Kira's wallet. She was gone before the startled Kira could say anything.

The three boys were left standing in a casual semicircle, with Shinn staring off into the distance, frowning awkwardly. The younger boy was slouching slightly, his hands stuffed into his pockets. Kira kept eyeing the games, probably too hyper to care for small talk. So much for spontaneous conversation…

"It's a shame Lunamaria couldn't make it," Athrun offered in Shinn's direction.

The raven-haired youth shrugged.

"Suits me," he mumbled absently. "She sucks at video games anyway."

Suppressing a chuckle, Athrun shook his head, then let his eyes travel over the rows and rows of arcade games, old and new, lining the walls.

While Kira was practically hopping up and down with excitement, Athrun found himself facing a wave of apprehension. He knew that he could not expect Kira and Shinn to get on like best buddies right away, but he could not shoo the feeling of stress building up in his middle. An afternoon of fun and games was the best way Athrun could think of to loosen the tension between the two. But he had an all too vivid image of his plan backfiring. Shinn was a very competitive person. The last thing Athrun wanted was his two friends competing at the same thing and Shinn blowing his top. That would just put a sour face on everything. He was not willing to risk it.

So it was with squared shoulders that Athrun strode among the endless aisles of entertainment devices in search of a _cooperative_ game.

--

Lacus was tapping her forefinger to her chin thoughtfully. The token dispenser had to be malfunctioning. Again, she pressed the money into the machine, but the odd contraption just spat it right out again. Sweet-talking it had not helped either. Frowning, she stuffed the crumpled piece of paper back into Kira's wallet and attempted to stare down the blinking little screen that insisted on displaying the words "COINS ONLY" in bright colours. She had never really played video games before, and having no experience with these things at all, she would need all the tokens she could get her hands on in order to catch up with the guys! How on earth was she supposed to buy enough tokens if she could only use coins?

Sighing, she wondered whether it had been a good idea to leave those three boys alone together. She had seen right through Athrun's good-natured scheme to get his two friends to become acquainted with one another. She saw the sense in it… But Athrun was not the most social soul she knew. In truth, his people skills were something awful. And Shinn seemed the type who would take anything the wrong way. By simply choosing the wrong words, Athrun could end up ruining his own plan. Especially if he tried to force things. She prayed he did not get his hopes crushed.

_Hmm, if I were Athrun…_ she thought, and for a moment, was amused by her own logic. With a fond smile, she continued along that train of thought. _If I were Athrun, I'd try my best to keep Kira and Shinn from competing against each other…_

"Hallo!" Pink-chan asserted, as it came rolling across the floor and jumping into her open palms.

"You're absolutely right!" she cooed at the mechanical pet, her smile growing. "If I were Athrun, I would be searching for a game we could play together as a team!"

"Hallo-hallo," her favourite pink toy chirruped in agreement.

It rolled out of her hands and bounced off on a whim. As her eyes followed the energetic little ball, they fell on a sign posted next to a door that stood slightly ajar. A sign that, upon closer inspection, proved to be most interesting…

--

**_Talisma – Everyone's Epic_**

_Team up with two friends to create your own unique adventures revolving around a party of impeccably detailed characters of your design! Every adventure is a different one, promising an infinity of replay value. Be among the first to test drive the highly advanced virtual reality-creating technology for FREE!_

_The game and its technology are still in their testing phases. Feedback from testers will be greatly appreciated._

– _Tri-Angelsoft Development Team_

Athrun eyed the logo of three intersecting haloes at the bottom of the sign Lacus was practically pressing his nose against. He had heard of this company before. They were famous for their engrossing one-player role-playing games – a never-ending series called _Last Legacy_. Athrun thought that last he heard they were already developing number twelve in the series. It seemed they were out to try something completely new with this one. It was the company's first multi-player game. This game would also be the first one under their development that would not have the name 'Last Legacy' attached to its title. Despite the fact that the game was still undergoing testing, Athrun felt pretty confident about this. After all, the company had a stunning reputation of eleven best-sellers in a row! The more he thought about it, the more he realized that this was the perfect game for him, Kira and Shinn. It was so perfect that he started wondering how it could be that Lacus always seemed to know what he was thinking.

"What is it? What is it?" Kira piped up, throwing one arm across Athrun's back and the other around Lacus, trying to get a clearer view of what they were looking at.

"You decided on something to play yet?" Shinn asked in a bored tone, approaching in a much more subdued fashion than Kira.

"It's a role-playing game that relies on a virtual reality system," Athrun explained as he scanned the small print on the sign for further details. "Apparently, the system allows you to see, hear, feel and even taste the virtual world it creates, allowing for more immersive gaming…"

"Coooool!" Kira enthused.

Shinn ran his eyes over the sign. Athrun thought the boy's red pupils lingered on the triple haloed logo a bit before his features contorted into a scowl.

"Bah, sounds corny to me," he remarked, turning away, his hands back in his pockets.

"Now, Shinn—" Athrun began.

"Hey, I'm entitled to an opinion, aren't I?" the ruby-eyed boy countered, cutting off Athrun's reproach.

For a couple of heartbeats, awkward silence followed. Kira scratched at his head. Lacus held her breath.

"Could it be that Shinn Asuka, self-proclaimed Arcade Master, has never played a role-playing game before?" Athrun asked the air. He could see Shinn's shoulders tense at the challenge in his voice. He allowed a breath's pause before speaking again. "Oh, wait… Don't tell me you're scared of a little VR?"

"Shut up!" Shinn grumbled, shoving his nose into the air. "Don't go around assuming stuff about me! I never said I wouldn't play, I just said that it sounds corny – _and it does_!" With that, he stalked into the room with pounding footsteps that should have shaken up the building. Moments later, his head poked around the doorway again and he growled: "Well!? You guys comin' or what!?"

Athrun and Kira shared a brief look of amusement before following. On his way past Lacus, Athrun caught an expression of admiration and pride showing in the pink-haired girl's eyes. Was she proud of _him_? He could not think of anything he had done to earn such an approving look from Lacus, but, as long as everyone was happy, things just might work out as he had planned.

--

Grunting in frustration, Shinn violently shoved the odd-looking headset onto his skull. He could not believe he had let Athrun trick him into playing a dumb role-playing game. He had been manipulated into a corner splendidly. For all his so-called innocence, Athrun Zala was a formidable strategist.

The truth Shinn would never tell anyone, though, was that he actually liked role-playing games… _Used_ to like them. How long ago had it been since his little sister had first nagged him to help her play _Last Legacy VII_?

Mayu had been struggling with a particularly difficult boss, the kind that required every magic spell in the book, and her party of three characters were hopelessly underdeveloped in terms of levels and experience. Those were things you always had to take into consideration when playing an RPG, especially as the monsters grew tougher, the dungeons deeper. But, typically, his sister had been so absorbed in the game's complex storyline that she had neglected the battle system, thus failing to let her characters learn new spells and abilities.

So, in the end, she came running to her big brother for help, crying that she would never see what happened next in the story if she could not defeat the infamous Pie King. Shinn remembered rolling his eyes. The stupid thing did not even have a tough-sounding name. The programmers seemed to have had a twisted sense of humour, though, for it had taken all of Shinn's tactical skills – and not to mention the hour spent reading the manual from cover to cover – to beat the Pie King. After the demise of the misnamed misfit, Mayu had somehow managed to turn the occasion into a ritual. Every time she came up against a boss or some other particularly difficult battle, she called Shinn to take over without even trying. Before he knew it, her big brother had ended up playing the game _for_ her. He fought the battles, she made the decisions that affected the game's storyline. Since then, the two of them had turned one-player role-playing games into cooperative adventures.

Being reminded of the long hours he and his little sister had spent playing RPGs together made Shinn's temper flare up. Not the best reaction, he supposed, but better than collapsing into a heap and crying.

So it was with unnecessary force that he plunked himself into one of the three seats lining the darkened room at the heart of the arcade. A vengeful smirk slid onto his face. They wanted him to participate believing that he had never played a game like this before. Well, they were dead wrong. Shinn Asuka was the world's greatest RPG expert, and the two ace pilots would have no choice but to acknowledge this when he led them to victory! Without hesitation, Shinn elected himself as the party leader while the two older boys were still taking their places. Let them think they would lead him by the nose. He would make them think again!

There was a long list of character classes to choose from. He chose a tough-looking one at random – a soldier wearing thick layers of armour and a hefty broad sword strapped to his back.

Instantly, he found himself in a small, circular room with only one piece of furniture in it: a tall, standing mirror. The walls were draped with blood red curtains so there seemed to be no exit. There probably was none.

Looking into the mirror, he found that he could adjust his character's design simply by imagining the changes. To his disappointment, he noted that he could not change his face. So he changed everything else. He turned the colour of his garments to jet black and added a flaring red cape for that heroic flourish. Twin serpents, the same dark red to match his cape, snaked up the backs of his gauntlets. With a grim smile, he added a long scar to his character design – a vicious thing that stretched from above his left eye, down his cheek and all the way to his chin. On a whim, he chose an eye patch to cover the eye where the scar was. He completed the picture with a skull-shaped chain adorning his right ear.

He studied the image he had created for himself. He looked decidedly ferocious – like some kind of feral incarnation of Shinn Asuka. He liked it. His approval seemed to trigger the game's opening story sequence. As he watched it, he actually felt glad that he had agreed to try this game. He caught snatches of Athrun and Kira's characters as the sequence progressed, but not enough to remember exactly what they looked like.

Then he was thrust into the story himself, dashing up the smouldering stairs of a tower that was on fire. He could smell the smoke and hear the crackling of burning ceiling beams. He could feel the heat of the flames on his cheeks. Sweat collected under his armour, almost making him wish that he had not chosen quite such heavy equipment. Adrenaline pulsed through his body as he raced the flames to his destination. He had no idea why the tower was on fire, or what he would find at the top, but he expected all would be revealed in due time, in true role-playing game fashion. No RPG bared its storyline to the players right from the start.

_This is kinda cool!_ he thought. Not that he would admit it aloud.

But when he reached the top of the spiralling stairwell, his heart froze over despite the heat. A young girl wearing a pure white robe was waiting for him to rescue her. Her chocolate brown hair was tied in a single braid, not her usual style, but that did not prevent him from recognizing her. She stood with arms open, her warm brown eyes glowing expectantly.

"Mayu!?" he gasped.

_How could they? How _dare_ they! HOW DARE THEY!!_

Shinn's body fought the restraints around his arms that was supposed to hold him safely in his seat while playing the game. With a cry of rage, he fumbled for the reset button and pounded it as hard as he could. The image of his late sister was replaced by placid static, but that did not erase it from his memory. He tore off the headset and threw it down on the ground so hard that it bounced. He was so angry that the edges of his vision actually blurred. Ignoring the complaints and protests of his disappointed team mates around him, he stalked out of the room. Let them think what they wanted. He was through with this stupid game!

--

"Shinn!" Athrun shouted as he untangled himself from the seatbelts of the gaming contraption.

He took a few determined strides after the hot-headed little punk. He was not sure just how he would go about setting the other boy straight, but Shinn had some explaining to do. After all the trouble Athrun had gone to getting his character design just right, the impulsive kid went and pressed the reset button! That was not all this was about, of course – he could always redesign his character – but what Shinn had done was rude _and_ unnecessary! He was startled to find a hand on his shoulder, stopping him.

"Athrun," Kira said softly, and shook his head. "Leave him be. Arguing with him won't make him enjoy the game. You two will just end up butting heads again."

_Again…_ Athrun sighed and just barely caught the grimace before it formed on his face. Kira did not have to make it sound like all he and Shinn ever did was disagree. They managed to get along sometimes. Better than before, at any rate. Well, Kira was right, he supposed. After his dramatic exit, no amount of reasoning would make Shinn play the game again, much less enjoy it. Maybe it was best to leave him to cool his jets for a while.

"Yeah, you're right," he said, nodding reluctantly.

"It's too bad, though," Kira commented, stretching his arms above his head, "I really wanted to try out that game!"

Athrun nodded again. In keeping with the tradition of every _Last Legacy_ instalment on the market, this game had a strict three player limit – no more, no less. He and Kira would not be able to play the game alone, no matter what they tried. They needed another player. The developers had asked for feedback, and Athrun knew what his first piece of critique towards this game would be – the lack of adding a computer-controlled player. Now it really seemed a shame that Lunamaria had not been able to join them. She loved playing all kinds of games, though apparently she was no good at any of them.

"Well, then…" he replied, heading for the door. He kept his back turned on his best friend in an effort to hide his disappointment. "No use hanging around here, right? How about we go see if they still have _Battloid Raiders_, or—"

"Lacus!?" Kira squawked so suddenly that Athrun whirled around to see what was happening.

"I would like to try," she said in that serene tone of hers that was somehow gentle, yet brooked no nonsense at the same time. She held the headset Shinn had flung off, cradling it to her chest the way she would comfort an insecure orphan. She looked so serious. The expression in her lake blue eyes were unreadable. Like so many times in the past, Athrun caught himself wishing he knew what she was thinking. Slowly, she cocked her head to one side. "You do not want me to?"

"I-It's not that!" Kira defended quickly, palms upraised. "I just didn't think you'd like…" He let the rest of the sentence trail off, realizing it was a lame response. "I was surprised, that's all."

A part of Athrun still wanted to go after Shinn and haul him back by the scruff of his neck to make him apologize. But the growing enthusiasm in his childhood friend's voice as he explained to the pink-haired girl the basic concepts of a role-playing game was enough to draw him in. It had been such a long time since they had just relaxed and had some good old fun, with no greater goal to worry about. Before he knew it, he was back in his seat and refastening the restraints and headset.

"This time, _I_ will be the party leader," he announced, making the appropriate choices hastily in order to beat Kira to it.

"Eh!? No fair!" Kira nagged. "But why?"

"So nobody can suddenly end the game and wipe out other people's character designs without my consent," was Athrun's stony reply as he adjusted the in-game settings to suit his statement.

Sure, he could always redesign his character, but once was bad enough! He could not remember which character class he had chosen before, so he just picked whichever seemed to suit him best. When he stood in the small changing room draped with grass green curtains, he realized with a sigh that he would have to completely remake his character from scratch – for some reason, his previous outfit was not compatible with the new character class. He frowned at his reflection in the standing mirror and set himself to his task.

He was so absorbed in his quest for the perfect character design that he failed to notice the curtains rustle behind him, where a shadowed shape, disrupted here and there by wisps of static interference, lurked…

Watching…

Waiting…

**To be continued…**


	2. Chapter 2: Ripples

**Author's Note:** Thank you, everyone who read, reviewed and/or supported the first chapter! I hope you will enjoy the second chapter!

**Disclaimer: Gundam SEED and all its characters belong to their respective owners.**

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**Fantasy Trap**

**Chapter 02: Ripples**

After reading a lengthy description of his own character's history, Kira stretched out on the lush grass and enjoyed the scenery. The game's amazing attention to detail made him feel like he was truly a part of it! The log displaying the story winked out of existence the moment he was no longer paying attention to it. He scanned the thriving, green pastures around him. He was lazing in the shade of a gnarled old tree, waiting for something to happen. This was his character's father— _his_ father's farm. _I have to get into this properly_, he reminded himself. His bow was propped up against the tree and his quiver of arrows stood next to it. He had chosen to be an archer, and had mischievously given himself a pair of pointy, Elf-like ears. Idly, he wondered what Athrun and Lacus were going to look like.

The only other character Kira had seen so far, had been his father. He was a broad-shouldered man with bushy hair, touched white at the temples. He had the same sharp, pointy ears as his son, a large grin and an even bigger laugh. Kira and his father were not of this land, but he had grown up here, on this farm.

Just then, a Non-Player Character, or NPC, came running up to him. The fellow was out of breath as he topped the hill where Kira's tree stood. The floating nametag above his head identified him as Arnold Clyne, the town's innkeeper. _What a coincidence…_ Kira thought, frowning. _He has Lacus's surname._ The old man looked pretty upset when he finally reached Kira. He was mopping the sweat from his round face with a white handkerchief.

"What's the matter?" Kira asked, trying hard to look concerned.

It was difficult to keep a broad grin from spreading on his face as the excitement of a potential adventure took him. He realized he was being silly. This was a character controlled by the game, so it was not like he would really have minded if Kira looked excited, but the man just seemed so real.

"You must hurry, Master Kira!" the innkeeper urged, practically hauling Kira to his feet. "There's a dragon in the **town square**!"

"A _dragon_!?" Kira parroted incredulously.

But as soon as the man finished his sentence, a minimap representing the town appeared in the corner of Kira's vision. A red cross marked the spot where the dragon was apparently doing its rampaging.

"Yes! Yes!" the innkeeper insisted. "Now please hurry!"

Kira barely had time to grab his bow and arrows before the bald little man dragged him off towards the centre of town. Sure enough, a ferocious, red dragon, a good two storeys tall, stood in the village proper, blowing smoke through a pair of flaring nostrils and trampling the cement blocks around the fountain under its monstrous, clawed feet. A red life bar popped up above the dragon's head, showing the enemy's total amount of hit points, along with a convenient tag labelling it a 'Ruby Dragon'.

"I guess I'll have to take care of this!" Kira announced, groping for an arrow from the quiver on his back. He was not scared, exactly – this was only a game, after all – but it was a measure of how realistic the dragon appeared that his palms were actually sweating.

"Do your best, okay, Kira!" a sweet voice called from the sidelines.

He jerked his head in the direction of the familiar sound. There, dressed in a lilac dress that fell in folds to her knees and a small, white jacket that stopped short of her middle, was Lacus. A large, yellow ribbon held her luscious pink hair in a thick braid. From her position in the doorway of the local bakery, she stood waving gleefully at him where he faced off with the huge, fire-breathing beast. That braid reminded Kira a bit of a cat's bushy tail as it swung left and right behind her back in time to the movement of her arm.

As soon as their eyes met, a nametag appeared above the pink-haired girl's head, stating her name, character class and a paragraph explaining her back story. Kira half-expected to get himself walloped by the dragon for being distracted, but when he risked a glance in the enemy's direction, he saw that the battle had conveniently paused itself and the dragon was waiting politely for Kira to finish reading Lacus's profile.

_xXx_

_**LACUS CLYNE**_

_**Class:**__ White Mage_

_**Age**_**:** _18_

_**Height: **__160cm_

_**Weight: **__46kg_

_**Blood Type:**__ B_

_Lively and cheerful, Lacus is the youngest daughter of the innkeeper, Arnold Clyne. She is always concerned about the needs of others and studies healing magic from Mistress Neenah Yuwe, the village Healer. She likes to help out at the bakery in her spare time. Lacus is your childhood friend, but, though she has never said anything out loud before, she seems to have strong feelings for you._

_xXx_

That last bit made Kira blush. He wondered if Lacus had had a hand in the composition of that little paragraph. But then, _he_ had never had a chance to write anything about himself. And Lacus was also staring in his direction intently, as if reading something. She giggled and he could feel his ears heating up further. He wondered what sort of thing the game was making up about him. He hoped it was nothing too embarrassing!

Abruptly, the dragon roared and started moving again. Kira spun back to face the scaled monster, arrow nocked and bowstring drawn taut. He loosed the arrow like he had been doing this all his life – in reality he had never even held a bow before – and it struck the dragon in its chest. It cried out in pain as a fat, white number _**5**_ appeared above its head, indicating the amount of damage Kira's attack had done. The enemy's life bar shrank accordingly. Angered, the dragon reared its front claws into the air and swung one of them at Kira before he had time to ready another arrow. Its enormous, scaled fingers came down on Kira. He flinched, expecting the talons to rend his flesh, but all he felt was a feather-light swipe of air.

_Oh yeah_, he thought sheepishly, _it's just a game!_

The white numbers appearing above his head, indicating that he had lost ten hit points, told him that he had better start playing it more seriously. He drew the fletching to his ear and loosed another arrow. Again, the dragon roared as its life points was diminished, then retaliated. Kira quickly did the math. The dragon was capable of doing more damage than Kira's arrows. If they kept on taking turns attacking, Kira's life bar would be emptied first, and he would end up losing the battle! He would have to try something else… But what?

Just then, the battle paused again. He realized that Lacus had run closer to stand beside him. She cupped her hands over Kira's chest and closed her eyes. For a moment, everything was bathed in serene, white light. Kira's life bar filled up again as the gentle light seeped into his body. Lacus opened her eyes and smiled at him.

"You concentrate on slaying the beast," she said in her command-of-the-Eternal voice as she swung her head to stare down their opponent, her pink hair swirling hypnotically as it followed the movement. "I will cover you."

A message popped into view. "_**Lacus**__ has joined your party!_" it said in bright pink letters.

The rest of the battle passed smoothly, with Lacus using her healing magic on Kira whenever he was hurt, and Kira covering for Lacus whenever the dragon tried to attack her. At last, with one last mighty roar, the dragon collapsed in a heap at their feet.

"Wow! We won!" Lacus exclaimed breathlessly. She turned to look at Kira, her eyes sparkling. "I never knew role-playing games could be such fun!"

"Well done, Master Kira!" the innkeeper piped up, clapping a hand on Kira's shoulder. "I knew we could count on you!"

"Well," Kira laughed self-consciously, "I couldn't have done it without Lacus!"

"Which reminds me!" the pudding-cheeked man said, his jovial features setting into a serious expression as he regarded Lacus. "Lacus, you really have to be more careful! One of these days you are going to give me a heart attack!"

"I will be more careful next time… Father," Lacus giggled.

"I wish I could say there won't be a next time," the old man continued, "but this has been the fourth dragon attack in the past month! Normally, the dragons in these parts are peaceful and docile creatures. Something must be upsetting the dragons to make them come here… Master Kira, I was hoping you could maybe…"

"Leave it to me!" Kira declared. "I'll get to the bottom of this for you!"

"And I am coming with you!" Lacus added excitedly.

The innkeeper frowned a bit at Lacus's words, but did not argue. As he carried on to explain where they would find the **Dragon Roosting Grounds**, a minimap came into view, indicating a mountain path winding through dense woodland, called the **Egg-Snatcher's Forest**. At the end of the spiralling road, a big, red cross marked the area where the dragons lived. Still wondering why RPGs always insisted on displaying the names of locations in bold lettering, Kira studied the map. Once he was satisfied, the image faded away.

"Please take good care of my daughter, Master Kira," the chubby little man said finally. For all the world, he seemed to be on the verge of tears, so Kira assured him that he would protect Lacus with his life. With that, they set off for the Dragon Roosting Grounds…

As was typical of role-playing games, the path through the Egg-Snatcher's Forest was littered with small fry enemies – among them, a puny kind of lizard giving the forest its name - that Kira defeated easily. Lacus had even found herself a weapon, nestled between the roots of a tree. _She's really getting into this!_ Kira thought proudly. In what seemed like no time at all, the two of them stood in front of a gaping cavern. The land around it was charred black. Tall spires rose from the earth and reached into the swirling clouds above for as far as the eye could see.

"Don't tell me you're here for the item too," a sombre voice spoke up behind them.

"Athrun!" Lacus exclaimed joyfully, like he was the last person in the world she expected to meet.

Athrun stood straight-backed in his majestic outfit of flowing red silk, tailored to such an extent of regal perfection that it would put any prince to shame. Somehow, Kira had been expecting to see this kind of extravagant garments on Athrun. The look was amplified by the proud and dignified air that naturally clothed his best friend no matter what he wore. If Athrun had lived in the medieval ages, Kira was certain that his friend would have fit right in…

Studying the design of the outfit, Kira wondered if Athrun was even aware of the fact that his elegant red tunic, cinched around his middle by a broad, white belt, was remarkably reminiscent to the style of a ZAFT uniform. He did not think so.

It was not a complete copy of the uniform, however. The spotless, white boots Athrun wore had black laces up the sides, the white belt sported a golden buckle and golden embroidery ran along his long, black sleeves and around the hem and collar of the tunic. A snowy cape, fastened to his shoulders with a gold chain, and a long staff encrusted with gems, provided a grand finish. Before Kira could comment, Athrun's profile filled his vision.

_xXx_

_**ATHRUN ZALA**_

_**Class:**__ Summoner_

_**Age**_**:** _18_

_**Height: **__174cm_

_**Weight: **__60kg_

_**Blood Type:**__ O  
_

_Athrun is a mysterious summoner searching for an object of power within the cave of the dragons, but will not tell you any further details about his quest. He prefers not to talk about his hometown, but your keen senses tell you that he must be nobility of some kind._

_xXx_

Kira was just observing how much the mysterious role seemed to suit Athrun when his childhood friend's lips curved into an amused smile. For one not as cool and composed as Athrun, that small quirk of lips would be the equivalent of stifling peals of laughter.

"What?" Kira demanded. He did not know why he should feel defensive, but he did.

"Nice ears, Kira," was Athrun's only reply, but the looked that passed between him and Lacus spoke blatantly of an inside joke.

Apparently, there was something really funny written in Kira's profile. _What I wouldn't give to find out what_, he thought with a groan. He was still frowning about it even after the bright green letters declaring that "_**Athrun**__ has joined your party!_" disappeared from view. He noticed Lacus studying him with a sidelong look. Hoping that he had not appeared sulky, Kira quickly straightened his shoulders and turned to advance into the cave.

--

The deeper they travelled into the dragon cave, the more useless Athrun began to feel. He was supposed to be a type of magician, but none of his spells were working. By now, they had faced enemies that ranged from poisonous leaping frogs to absurdly animated slime balls. No matter which of the spells in his selection he cast, the damage was always zero. He did not even try hitting the enemies with his staff anymore: the physical damage Athrun managed to deal was never more than _**3**_, while Kira's arrows, on the other hand, produced numbers like _**10**_ or _**12**_ against the same monsters. That did not bother him so much, because Kira had chosen an archer – archers were physical fighters. What really rankled, though, was that Lacus, who was a _healer_ and had nothing but a lousy, white cane to fight with, dealt out blows to rival Kira's damage!

The others pretended not to notice, of course. Athrun tried to tell himself that it was because they had fought more battles than him on their way here, and that their levels were higher than his. But he could not help feeling left out. Dejectedly, he kept to the back row whenever an enemy sprang up out of the darkness.

What was the point of playing a role-playing game if you could not even take part in the battles properly?

He was just considering asking them whether they would mind resetting the game and starting over – selfish of him, he knew, but this just was not any fun – when he sensed a glowing warmth from somewhere further into the cave. He felt _drawn_ to it, like it was calling out to him. He glanced at the others, but they did not seem to feel anything. But he was not imagining it. With each step they took, they came closer to the source that was emitting the sweet warmth.

"A dead end!" Kira complained when they came to the deepest reaches of the cave. "I don't believe it! Did we take a wrong turn somewhere?" He scratched his head in frustration as he frowned at the air in front of him, probably consulting his map.

"I have heard of using a thing called a 'walk-through' in situations like these…" Lacus offered thoughtfully.

"Lacus!" Kira gasped, sounding scandalized. "That's _cheating_!"

"Oh my, are you sure?" she asked, cocking her head to one side innocently. Somehow, Athrun had the feeling that Lacus knew more about role-playing games than she let on.

Lacus continued twittering away in the background, Kira defending his cause all the way, but Athrun did not hear the rest of the conversation. The warmth that was calling out to him had turned into an aching desire. Captivated, he took a few steps until he was standing against the cave wall. It was definitely coming from here somewhere… He pressed his palms flat against the rocky surface. Suddenly, the wall rippled – and disappeared! – to reveal a new chamber behind it.

"Oh my!" Lacus exclaimed.

"Yeah! Way to go, Athrun!" Kira cheered, pumping a fist in the air excitedly.

Inside the hidden chamber, a golden podium made up the centrepiece. Atop it, perched on a velvet cushion, sat an oval-shaped bauble. The glow seemed to be coming from a tiny flame dancing within it. The trinket looked to be made of glass, but when Athrun touched it, it felt as hard and solid as a rock. As his fingers slid over the item's smooth surface, he could feel its heat gradually soak into his skin. The flickering flame grew smaller and smaller as the warmth became one with him. It felt right. When the little flame finally became so small that it winked out of existence, the oval-shaped object turned cold and grey, just like a regular stone.

"_You have obtained the __**Phoenix Cradle**_," a message conveniently pointed out.

"Well, looks like you got what _you_ came for," Kira said, casually leaning back against the far wall, "but we still haven't figured out why those dragons keep attacking our town."

His question was answered by the earth beneath their feet giving a violent lurch.

"GIVE BACK TREASURE!!" an inhuman voice rumbled.

A gigantic, living statue came tearing down the spacious halls of the dragon cavern. It had no eyes, just one enormous mouth – the teeth inside it looked like boulders. Sand and stalactites shook loose from the ceiling as the entire cave shuddered with the giant's violent footsteps. A 'Rock Golem', its name tag declared.

"Level 10…" Kira gasped as he read the enemy's statistics. "B-But we're only level 3! We can't fight this thing!"

He fired a volley of arrows at the thing – by now, his character had grown enough that he was able to fire several with one shot. But the measly little arrows snapped as they connected with the monster's impenetrable granite skin.

"Allow me to try!" Lacus chirped, running up to the beast with more courage than Athrun himself felt.

She swung her cane at it like it was a golf club instead of a weapon. She bounced back and Kira caught her just before she could make a rather graceless landing on the cave's stone floor. Hastily, he handed her a Potion from his pocket so she could replenish her lost hit points.

"GIVE BACK TREASURE!!" the creature bellowed, thundering like an earthquake.

It gave Kira one rock-fisted backhand. The tremendous attack sent the hapless archer skidding across the cave floor. His life bar ran empty, all of his hit points depleted.

"Just one attack and…" Athrun murmured in horror.

"Kira!" Lacus cried out, rushing to his side.

Kira was not hurt, of course, but while his life bar was empty, he could not control his character. Lacus began chanting a reviving spell as she knelt beside Kira, but even as she did, the monstrosity started its advance on her. Without thinking, Athrun darted forward and placed himself between Lacus and the Rock Golem, arms spread wide – as well try to stop a rockslide with his bare hands, but he could not just stand there and watch…

At that moment, the staff in Athrun's hand lit up with soft, warm energy, and he saw a new ability – one he had definitely not had before – start to glow from the corner of his eye. He could not help smirking at the stone-headed giant as the last piece of the puzzle slid into place… He was a summoner. Obviously his spells would not work if he had nothing to summon! But now, he had something… He spun his staff in a blazing circle in front of him. The golem shrank back at the awesome fireworks Athrun's weapon was producing. But he was not done yet. A marvellous, red-and-gold bird – a Phoenix – emerged from the ring of fire made by Athrun's staff.

The spectacular bird of fire drowned the Rock Golem in a blast of liquid flame from its scorching wings. Giving its magnificent feathers a disdainful shake, the Phoenix wheeled to perch on Athrun's arm. Nothing but ashes remained of the monster.

"Wow!" he heard someone breathe in awe.

He thought it must have been Kira. The Phoenix was the size of a large dog, but, sitting there on his arm, it felt lighter than a feather. Its fiery eyes stared deep into its master's admiring green ones. He found that he could not tear them away from the beautiful creature that seemed so wild, yet somehow so tame.

"Athrun, you defeated it!" Lacus applauded eagerly. Next to her, Kira was just getting up, his life bar refilled with the help of Lacus's healing magic.

"Hey, Athrun, where did you get those?" he exclaimed, staring at Athrun in complete astonishment.

"Where did I get… what?" Peering over his shoulder, Athrun saw them – glittering like a thousand candles and reflecting off the walls of the cave, two elegant wings of pure fire sprouted from his back. "I have… _wings_!?"

"It must be a gift from this lovely dear!" Lacus cooed at the Phoenix. "Isn't that right?"

She had already jumped up from tending to Kira and was admiring the Phoenix with its broad fan of rainbow tail feathers. But just as she raised her hand to stroke its beak, the great bird vanished into a ball of red light that slipped into a ruby that was embedded on Athrun's staff. The red stone shone brilliantly. All the other gems set into the weapon seemed dull in comparison.

The moment the summoned creature disappeared, the wings on Athrun's back winked out as well, causing a disappointed Kira to protest loudly.

"I suppose it's just for show," Athrun replied, shrugging off Kira's dissatisfied look.

"But they were so awesome!" his childhood friend insisted, pouting. Then his expression brightened. "Hey, do you think that if I level up a lot, I'll be able to do that too!?"

"Not likely," Athrun countered flatly.

"Well, how about we restart the game and both of us be summoners?" his best friend offered eagerly.

"Forget it."

"Whaaaaat? Why not!?" Kira complained.

That earned him an amused giggle from Lacus. She placed a delicate hand on his shoulder and proceeded to explain to him the importance of diversity in the party, and how they would need everyone's skills combined in order to win the more difficult battles ahead. If Athrun had not known better, he would have thought she knew more about role-playing games than Kira did! He was seriously beginning to doubt that Lacus had never played an RPG before.

A burst of static interference was all the warning he had. Ducking and rolling instinctively, he looked up to see a tall, sharp-ended icicle sticking up out of the floor, right where he had last been standing. The shard of ice was still vibrating from the force with which it had been driven into the ground. It had been meant for him.

"My sincerest apologies, Your Young Highness, but your father requires your presence," a velvety voice purred.

Athrun's eyes darted until they located the source of the voice; a sinister figure hovering close to the ceiling of the cavern. The man was cloaked in darkness, and shadows wrapped his face like a veil.

"I suggest that you return to the palace immediately," the figure continued, the tone of his voice more than a little threatening.

According to his character's history, Athrun had run away from home. He was supposed to act very secretive about it, so the profile had been vague about his home and family, but it never mentioned anyone looking for him. So it was to be a plot twist none of the players expected. This game seemed to have been programmed exceptionally well, allowing it to not only create random storylines for each player's character, but to make use of key story-telling elements… Athrun did not know why he was so surprised. Being capable of generating complex and unique storylines was, after all, one of the things the advert had been boasting about as one of the game's main attractions.

Well, his character would not have run away from home only to be called back by a menacing figure who tossed deadly icicles at your back. _I suppose I should act the part_, Athrun thought.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I won't be going back," Athrun declared, fixing the ominous shadow with what he hoped was a firm, yet defiant stare.

"I have orders to bring you back by any means necessary," the malignant voice droned, and momentarily Athrun could see a flash of white teeth displaying a sadistic smile, "so I was hoping you would say that…"

Athrun could not help feeling a chill at the unmasked eagerness that laced the man's voice. For a split second, static interference broke up the image of the man. In that instant, Athrun thought he saw two glassy eyeholes glinting in the blackness. He froze, his mind reeling. _No… It's not possible…_

"Athrun, look out!" Kira shouted, jolting him out of his daze.

Harsh, blue light, streaming from the palm of the man's right hand, shot at Athrun and enveloped him. The light was draining him. He felt dizzy. It felt like something was sucking all the air from his lungs. Fighting to stay upright, he dropped to his knees.

"Fear not," his assailant said in a mock comforting tone. As the figure spoke, vines shot from the outstretched fingertips of his other hand, ready to entangle Athrun and snatch him up. "My mission is to take you alive."

The vines seemed to be racing one another in a frenzy to see which of them could reach him first. He wanted to back away from the greedy plants closing in on him, but the cruel light seemed to pulse as it feasted on Athrun's remaining energy. He could not move. It was an effort to even keep his head up. Suddenly, the snake-like plants struck an invisible wall around Athrun with the sound of a beaten gong. That horrible light was cut off by it too. Blinking, in relief as much as surprise, Athrun realized that he was looking at Lacus's back as she covered him protectively.

"I will not allow this," she said in a calm, clear voice as she held the barrier spell in place.

"Hmph, wretched girl…" the dark figure spat. "You think that will stop me?" He aimed his right hand at her when three arrows pin-cushioned him from the side. _Static ripple._ His glassy eyes snapped in Kira's direction and shone with hatred. _Static ripple._ "Curse you, Halfling!"

With that, he disappeared.

Lowering his bow, Kira came running to Athrun's side. Athrun stood, only to collapse into Lacus's supporting arms. She shared a concerned look with Kira as he reached them. Athrun's vision was blurring and his head spun. He felt sick.

"Hey, are you all right?" Kira asked anxiously as he shifted some of Athrun's weight onto his own shoulders.

Athrun hung there between his two friends like a wrung out piece of cloth. His stomach clenched violently. Those glass eyes… That voice… Could it have been? No. That was not possible. It just was not.

"Athrun, can you hear me?" Lacus pressed.

Athrun realized that he had his eyes closed and forced them open. He did not trust himself to speak for fear of his heaving stomach taking over. He felt the gentle glow of Lacus's healing spell ease his light-headedness. Soon, he could stand on his own two feet again. He no longer felt as if he would faint at any moment and the queasiness around his middle had disappeared. But as he followed Kira and Lacus out of the cave in search of their next quest, he felt a growing uneasiness inside him. That voice… He wondered if the others had noticed.

Before he knew it, they were topping a rise from which they could observe Kira and Lacus's hometown, a charming little village called **Iris**. Shaking his head, he told himself that it was impossible and that he should stop worrying about it. Kira surely would have said something, anyway.

**To be continued...**


	3. Chapter 3: Silence

**Author's Note:** I actually wrote this chapter in reverse... 0xo Ehem, anyway, a great big hug to each and every reader and reviewer! You guys keep me going!

**Disclaimer: Gundam SEED and all its characters belong to their respective owners.**

* * *

**Fantasy Trap**

**Chapter 03: Silence**

Buying equipment in this game was very much like going shopping, Athrun philosophized as he stood staring at the goods lining the walls of the Weapon Shop. To think, they had come all this way, and now they were at a complete stand-still…

After reporting the Rock Golem's demise to the village council, they were rewarded with a handsome amount of Gold Points. There was nothing worth spending their game money on in the village of Iris, since it was just a small, backwater town. So Kira and Lacus had agreed to keep on travelling with 'the stranger', as the townsfolk had dubbed Athrun, to see more of the world and to essentially buy something of value with their reward money.

They had crossed a frigid mountain range to get to the next town. Harried by snowstorms and icy winds, they had braved the deadly Snow Giants, Big Foot monsters and the occasional Yeti that dwelled in Snowflake Pass. There had even been a nasty Ice Troll. Athrun's Phoenix had made short work of that one, and, inside its carcass, he had found another shiny little bauble – the 'Shiva Cradle'. The next fiend unfortunate enough to harass them, had tasted the Shiva's snowstorm breath attack and shattered from the cold. Athrun had been surprised that, this time, his new summoned creature gave him wings made of thin ice. Lacus could not stop admiring the petite ice fairy with her sharp features and long, snowy tresses, but, sitting on Athrun's shoulder with an impish grin, the Shiva only had eyes for her master. Like before, the moment the Shiva took her place in the white gem on his staff, Athrun's frosty, glass-like wings disappeared. Again, Kira had complained.

Now, as Athrun watched Lacus thoroughly examine two pieces of armour, he caught himself daydreaming about what other kinds of creatures he would find through the course of the game. As much as he hated to admit it, at that moment, he was bored.

Shopping with Lacus was a drawn out business…

Kira had quickly grabbed the biggest, toughest bow in the shop, bought the thing and was done with it. But Lacus just could not seem to make up her mind. The two items looked nothing like armour, of course. In fact, they were two jackets that looked a lot like the one Lacus was already wearing. The only real difference was the colour of the garments. No matter what they looked like, the moment she equipped one of them, her defence against physical damage would rise and she would be able to withstand heavier attacks.

"What do you think about this one, Kira?" she enquired sweetly, holding the pink one up against her lavender dress.

"It looks very nice!" Kira replied and Lacus graced him with a delighted smile.

"And this one?" she asked, holding the yellow one up for his inspection.

"That one looks really nice too!" Kira replied.

"Really, Kira," Lacus sighed, arching a delicate, pink eyebrow at him, "it seems you do not care _what_ I wear…"

"Huh? N-No, no," Kira stammered, "it's because both look nice!"

"Honestly!" Lacus huffed, then spun to face Athrun. "Athrun, which one should I buy?" she asked in a tone that demanded an honest opinion, yet somehow sounded serene at the same time.

Athrun could feel Kira's eyes boring holes into his back. Kira had every right to be protective of Lacus – she was very beautiful _and_ popular. There was an easy way out of this one, but the mischievous side of Athrun suddenly had a very sneaky idea… With a slight smirk, he pointed to the sun-coloured jacket in the pink-haired girl's left hand.

"That one," he said simply.

"This one?" Lacus asked, putting down the pink garment and scrutinizing the yellow one anew. "Well, it _does_ match the ribbon in my hair…"

There was a full second of silence before the estimated explosion erupted.

"Buy the pink one!" Kira shouted, practically lunging forward to stop Lacus from paying the shopkeeper, who was watching the whole affair with a bland, NPC smile on her face.

"Oh my?" Lacus cheeped as the brown-haired boy pressed the pink jacket back into her hands. "Kira?"

"Buy the pink one!" he insisted. "It will look great with your hair!"

Lacus blinked and stared at Kira as if she had never seen him before. Slowly, surely, a soft blush was forming on her pale cheeks. _Kira should compliment her more often…_ Athrun thought, his smile growing.

"Really?" she asked, looking as flustered as Athrun had ever seen her.

"Yep!" Kira assured her, nodding vigorously. "Really!"

It was all just too much for Athrun. Unable to keep his amusement to himself any longer, he burst out laughing. This earned him a dirty look from Kira and a puzzled one from Lacus.

"What are you laughing at, Athrun?" Kira challenged, his purple eyes narrowed and his expression dangerously close to sulking. Athrun thought he had better explain now, before Kira decided to take this personally. Not that placid Kira Yamato was one to hold a grudge, but who knew how much of the rules had changed since the guy had fallen in love?

"Kira, did you even bother to look at the stats on that item?" Athrun chuckled. "The obvious choice would be the yellow one. It has much stronger armour!"

In fact, the pink one had even less armour than the white jacket Lacus had equipped at that moment, so buying it would be a complete waste of their gold. The defensive frown slowly faded from Kira's features, replaced by an expression of pure embarrassment.

"Oh…" Kira grumbled, scratching his head sheepishly. When he regained himself, he shot Athrun a 'you-could've-said-something-sooner-you-know' look. Athrun just smiled.

When they finally left the shop, Athrun wore a silver earring that amplified his defence against magic damage, Kira had his new bow and a couple of onion arrows, and Lacus paraded around dreamily in her new _pink_ jacket. She insisted on wearing it since Kira had said that it would look good with her hair. They had tried talking her out of it, both of them – her armour was weaker than it ever had been – but she had happily announced that it was Kira's job to protect her. Then, it was Kira's turn to start blushing.

_He really should compliment her more…_ Athrun thought fondly.

--

Shinn stood hammering the controls of a rather ancient-looking arcade game called _Pac Man_ or some such. His foul mood was finally starting to wear off. Trying out all of the oldest games in the arcade had distracted him from the vision of his little sister. At least, for the time being. He had progressed into the more difficult levels already and was only a few hundreds from beating the top score. He was just about to bag another prize when a high-pitched squeal, loud enough to be heard above the buzz of the arcade, drew his attention. He peeked in the direction the sound had come from, and felt his jaw drop.

A familiar-looking, red-haired girl wearing a pink-and-orange jacket and a pair of short, purple pants – they were so short that they were barely visible under her jacket, Shinn noted with a blush – stood battling with one of the arcade machines. A white cap and matching white handbag hanging at her hip named her the younger of the two Hawke sisters – that and the trademark twin ponytails swishing from side to side as she focused her concentration fully on the game in front of her. Shinn did not think it all that strange to find Meyrin Hawke in an arcade, playing games. What really had him staring was her astounding score.

"Meyrin?" he asked, gaping.

At hearing her name, the redhead spun around with a surprised squeak and jumped so high, her ponytails actually rebounded. In a flash, she pulled down her cap and covered her eyes with the pair of pink sunglasses that had been resting on top of it.

"Ah! You must be mistaken!" she stammered, attempting to mask her voice behind a cough. A fat lot of good that did, Shinn thought with a grimace. He had already recognized her.

"Meyrin, wait!" he called out, but she was already slipping away in the crowd.

Frowning, he stared after her. Was she trying to hide the fact that she was hanging out in the arcade? If she wanted to play out here in public without people knowing it was her, she ought to at least have put on some sort of disguise! The day Shinn understood the things girls did would probably be the day that elephants sprouted wings, hw thought with a shrug.

It still plagued him, however. Did it have anything to do with the mysterious fight Luna and her little sister had had, but would not speak of? Had Meyrin been planning to apologize, but found that her elder sister had not shown up? Come to think of it, where the hell _was_ Luna, anyway? Honestly, these girls just did not make any sense! Maybe he should ask Athrun about it. Athrun seemed to know a great deal about girls.

_Forget it!_ Shinn snapped silently, disgusted with himself for even thinking of the possibility.

That would only serve to further bloat the blue-haired Coordinator's already oversized ego. The day Shinn asked that arrogant bastard for advice would be the day he boarded that winged elephant and flew to moon on its back!

--

Plumes of smoke marred their picturesque view of the sunset as they approached the village of Swanford, a supposedly bustling little town indicated by the map as their next destination. At first, Athrun had dismissed the smell of burning wood for a forest fire or possibly some kind of farming technique. But, as they neared the now familiar X-marker on the minimap, he knew that he could not keep on deceiving himself.

Swanford was a charred skeleton of its former self. Sparks and black smog drifted through the air. Everything reeked of destruction. Athrun soon realized that this had been no mere accident, and not even arson. It was a terrible sight – a sight that did not belong in any game – that now filled their senses. Above the sound of crackling flames, Athrun's ears could pick up the moans of the wounded and the heart-wrenching wails of the weeping. This had been a massacre. Desperately, he tried to shut out the scene of devastation before him, to cut off the sounds rising from that spent inferno.

"This is too cruel…" Lacus exhaled faintly. Her sky blue eyes wavered and Kira caught her just in time as her legs gave way beneath her.

"This was done in terribly bad taste," Kira said, his face as expressionless as a statue's. "Even if they were going for realism…"

He looked at Athrun and Athrun nodded. That look conveyed the unspoken confirmation he had been waiting for. Having seen too much of the real thing in their own lives, neither of them wanted to continue this, even if it was only supposed to be a game. Athrun closed his eyes and accessed the main menu of the game. Absently, he wondered if this kind of thing was the reason for Shinn quitting the game prematurely and storming off without a word. Browsing the list of options available, he concentrated on the one that read 'end game'. A flood of static rushed into his senses, stunning him.

With eyes wide open in surprise, he saw a flash of Kira and Lacus's concerned faces before blacking out…

x x x

_Everything was pitch black._

Where am I?

_Static noise sang in his ears, making his head hurt._

_His breathing was shallow against the leather restraints holding him upright. They felt uncomfortably tight. He tried to open his eyes, but could not. He tried to move. His body refused him numbly. He tried again, and felt a small thrill of victory at managing to move the fingers on his right hand._

"_A-Athrun…?" a timid voice spoke from out of the scratchy darkness. "Athrun?"_

I'm here! _he cried out silently. Where_ was _here, exactly? He tried to move his lips, but no words came out._ I can't move! _He had to at least make a sound. What if they thought he was dead? They were going to leave him here! _Somebody, please find me! _His mouth worked soundlessly in a futile attempt to speak. It was like trying to talk around a mouthful of cotton, but he had to try. He willed his unresponsive tongue to move._ Work, damn you! _His heart sank at hearing the dim echo of retreating footsteps._

No, wait! _he wanted to scream._ Come back!

_But no one could hear him._

_He was drowning in silence…_

x x x

"…thrun! Athrun!"

_L… ight…._

…_Light?_

"I don't think that will help, Lacus," Kira was saying gently. "He wasn't hurt inside the game, so…"

Yes, there was a soft, tender light ebbing and flowing in and out of his faltering vision as he heaved open one eye. The first thing he really saw was Lacus's face, her lake blue eyes narrowed in concentration and sweat trailing down her forehead as she bathed him in the light of one of her healing spells. Never before in his life had he seen her look so desperate yet steadfastly determined at the same time. Was she worried about him?

"He's awake!" she exclaimed, letting the spell fade as she scooted over to make room for Kira by Athrun's side.

"What happened?" he croaked, sitting up groggily.

"You were trying to quit the game when you passed out," Kira informed him, helping Athrun to his feet. "Remember?"

"I was trying to quit the game…" Athrun repeated, trying hard to recollect and piece together the jumble of sensations he thought he had experienced. The only thing he could recall with certainty was a vague memory of panic rising in his throat. "And there was interference…"

"I've tried quitting several times while you were out," Kira continued, ruffling his own hair in frustration, "but the option is greyed out and— Athrun?"

Athrun felt the colour drain from his face as it suddenly hit him. The silent room with the restraints… If what he had felt was real… If it had not been just a nightmare… then something was seriously wrong out there in the real world. Lacus blinked at him in confusion, and Kira had a look of apprehension in his amethyst eyes.

"I think…" Athrun began, but had to swallow before he could complete the sentence. "I think we're stuck here…"

Trapped inside a game, with no way to contact the outside world…

--

Meyrin did not stop to catch her breath until she slipped into a broom closet and stood with her back safely against the door. If Shinn was here, in _this_ arcade, it could only mean one thing… _Sis is probably here too!_ she groaned inwardly. It was bad enough that she had had to lie to Lunamaria about having a dentist appointment, but to have walked into the very arcade where she was hanging out with Athrun and the others…! _I mean, there are dozens of arcades across town! Why did they have to pick _this_ one!?_

Her only hope was that Shinn had not recognized her after all. She sank to the floor with a moan. What were the chances of that?

Sighing despondently, she studied her feet. The only option she had left was to wait here until she was sure Lunamaria and the rest had gone home. That would at least lessen the chances of being seen by her. If only Shinn had not seen her! _Sis will never forgive me if she finds out I've been practicing!_ If they had not gone past the forgiving stage already…

Wondering how long she was going to have to sit here, she looked up, and, for the first time, realized that this small room with its dimmed lights was definitely no broom closet.

"What is this place?" she wondered out loud.

Wires and equipment filled the room. In the middle of the small room stood three seats that reminded her an awful lot of a dentist's chair. Taking a closer look, she noticed that there were people strapped to the chairs. Each of the three wore a headpiece of sorts, and everything was connected to a sizable black box with a flashing green light. Letters spelling the word 'Talisma' was printed on the side of the box next to a logo made up of triplet haloes. Was this the virtual reality game she had heard about? She had been meaning to give it a spin…

Naturally intrigued by anything to do with programming, Meyrin picked her way across the wires to get a closer look at the unfamiliar setup. Studying the players, she felt an involuntary thrill pass through her body as she recognized the navy-haired boy in the seat closest to her – it was Athrun! With a small smile, she noted how cute he looked with the visor of the strange headset covering his eyes.

_Wait a minute…! If Athrun is here, then—_

Hastily, she checked the other players. One was Athrun's best friend, Kira Yamato, the other, a pink-haired girl who could only be the Lady Lacus. She breathed a sigh of relief at noticing her sister's absence – it would have been terribly bad luck to bump into her now, after going through all the trouble of running away from Shinn!

Shaking her head, Meyrin pushed aside the ridiculous mental picture of her sister rising out of one of these chairs like a mummy from a crypt and chasing after her with glowing red eyes. She was being silly. Sis always said she had an overactive imagination. Even if Lunamaria _had_ been here, none of these three seemed to be aware of what was going on around them, so she went back to studying Athrun…

She bit her lip. He was very still for someone who was supposed to be playing a game. He was not sitting up straight, either. Instead, his body was slumped against the restraints of the chair, and the attachments on the headset was the only thing keeping his head from lolling to one side. Either the game was so boring that he had fallen asleep… or he was unconscious! Gingerly, she pressed two fingers to his throat to feel for a pulse. His heart rate seemed normal, but his skin felt ice cold and his breathing was shallow.

Something was very wrong here! Panicked, she reached to pull off the headset, to free him! Her eyes caught the warning just in time. Her fingers frozen inches away from removing the first clasp, she read the clear, yellow letters:

CAUTION: DO NOT REMOVE HEADSET WHILE GAME IS IN PROGRESS

Her knees buckled at the realization of what she had just been about to. She could not remove the headset forcefully. She was not sure that it would have helped, in any case. She could not give up now. Athrun and the others were counting on her! A bit of searching turned up a manual, discarded on a table in the corner of the room. Just the thing she needed!

But her heart sank as she opened the skinny book to scan the first – and only – three pages. It contained a long list of rules that advised against drinking beverages near the gaming console, pointed out that strictly three players were required to play the game, and all kinds of things about what should not be done while playing. There was nothing about what to do if a player were to lose consciousness. Frustrated, she was about to toss the flimsy little booklet aside when she read something about a "rouse button".

"This is it!" she shouted excitedly. "To get the attention of a player from the outside, do not startle or shake the player. Do NOT remove the headset under ANY circumstances," she could not help but grimace at that, "but please refer to the 'rouse button' located behind said player's chair…"

She dropped the manual and scurried over to Athrun's seat. Sure enough, she found a sizable, blue button at the back of the chair. Hurriedly, she bent down and pressed it. Looking up, she saw the fingers on Athrun's right hand twitch ever so slightly. _Come on, come on…_ she urged silently. Again, she pressed the fat, blue button and stared at him hopefully.

No reaction.

"A-Athrun…?" she ventured. "Athrun?"

Silence greeted her. On the verge of despair, she rushed to try the rouse buttons on the other two chairs.

Utter silence.

_Help!_ she thought, bounding to her feet. _I'll get help!_

**To be continued...**


	4. Chapter 4: Bait

**Author's Note:** I'm so grateful to everyone who's read and reviewed this story! Thank you so much for your support! Please enjoy chapter 4... (_Infinite sky_, there's a little something in there that's dedicated to you!)

**Disclaimer: Gundam SEED and all its characters belong to their respective owners.**

* * *

**Fantasy Trap**

**Chapter 04: Bait**

Shinn had felt like laughing at Meyrin in her face when she came running to him with some tale about Athrun and the others having the life sucked out of them by a video game. Now, standing in the Talisma room and staring at the three unmoving forms strapped to the gaming contraption, he was extremely glad that he had not. The three unconscious players appeared to be lifeless, barely even breathing.

"Wait a minute, Meyrin!" he protested when he finally managed to untangle his treacherous tongue. "What the heck do you expect _me_ to do!?"

"I-I dunno…" the nervous girl mumbled, scuffing her shoes against the smooth floor tiles, creating an irritating squeak noise. "I just thought…"

"You just thought of good old Shinn, didn't you?" he groaned. It was nice to feel needed, in a twisted kind of way, but seriously, what was he supposed to do? She probably had a better idea of what was going on than Shinn did! He sighed. "Obviously, if we can't take the headsets off while the game is still going, we'll have to get the game to end somehow, right?"

She nodded eagerly.

"What about pressing reset? Have you tried that yet?"

She shook her head so her ponytails bounced energetically.

"I… hadn't thought of that…" she admitted. "But what if that works the same way as removing the headsets?"

"I dunno…" Shinn mused. He had reset the game and come out fine, after all. "You really think it might?"

"Have you ever had someone dunk a bucket of ice water on you unexpectedly?" an unfamiliar voice asked calmly, making them both jump.

Shinn spun to face the shape of an intimidating silhouette filling the doorway. Why had he not heard the man approach? He must have used stealth, otherwise Shinn's soldier training would certainly have let him pick up the guy's footsteps long before he decided to announce himself. That was it. Shinn refused to believe that he had been too distracted or maybe even upset to notice someone sneaking up on him.

"What are you kids doing here?" the stranger asked in a level tone as he stepped into the dim lighting. "You're not supposed to be messing around with the equipment while someone else is playing. It's dangerous…"

The meagre illumination was enough to reveal that he was a tall man with short, dark hair and a pair of blue eyes that Shinn figured some girls would probably find pretty. His broad shoulders, laced with toned muscles, spoke of regular exercise – if this guy turned out to be a trouble-maker, Shinn found himself grudgingly admitting that he might not have a very good chance at beating this guy in a physical bout.

"We're not messing around, sir!" Meyrin piped up earnestly. "Our friends are in trouble! It looks like they're unconscious!"

"So you decided to press the reset button?" His tone was accusing, and his remark sounded more like an allegation than a question. "I have a good mind to haul you two out of here and ban you from this arcade for good!"

Shinn's mouth worked on several cutting retorts at once, but Meyrin jumped in again, all syrupy meekness. Shinn wondered how she managed that. She used that move on Luna too, sometimes, and, surprisingly, it worked more often than not.

"Please, sir," she begged, "we didn't know what to do!"

"Well, pressing the reset button is the last thing you ought to do," the stranger replied, tugging at his forelock irritably. "Like I said, have you ever had somebody dunk ice water on you?"

"Well," Meyrin answered slowly, chewing her bottom lip, "there was that time we all went to the beach. I was sunbathing and the guys" – frosty glare at Shinn – "thought it would be funny to splash a bucketful of seawater on me…"

Abruptly, the stranger laughed. He was this big, tough guy and now he was acting pleasant all of a sudden? Shinn did not know whether he felt like trusting this guy.

"Not like that," he chuckled. "More like suddenly being submerged in arctic seawater." Just as suddenly as the mirth had appeared in his eyes, it was replaced by grave seriousness. "The shock alone could kill them."

An awful silence filled the room.

"You mean somebody made a dangerous thing like this and actually allowed people to test it without warning them that this could happen!?" Shinn demanded, his temper flaring.

"Look," the man reasoned, "instead of grinding moral issues here, why don't you two just step aside and let me do my job, OK?"

He even had the audacity to sound patient!

"Like hell are we just gonna—"

"Your job?" Meyrin asked hopefully, flatly ignoring Shinn's futile attempts at finishing his sentence. "You mean you can help them?"

He had never realized that Lunamaria's timid little sister could be so infuriatingly bold.

"I will certainly do my best. I am, as you have no doubt suspected, Tri-Angelsoft's technician aboard the Talisma Project," he introduced himself formally, even extending a hand to shake. "Terence Hartford, at your service."

"Pleased to meet you. I'm Meyrin Hawke," she returned, grasping his hand and shaking it firmly. She then nodded in Shinn's direction. "And he's Shinn."

Shinn turned away with an indignant grunt. He could have introduced himself, he just chose not to. And anyway, he was not about to trust some guy with his friends' lives just because he claimed to be a professional technician. _My _friends_? Where the heck had that come from?_ He chose not to ponder that thought too closely for the moment. Instead, he studied the technician as he pulled out and opened a briefcase Shinn had not noticed before. From inside, he took out a laptop, several wires and computer stuff Shinn was not too familiar with. Meyrin seemed really interested, though. The man was oddly tolerant of the nosy girl's inquisitiveness. When Shinn asked him just what he was planning on doing, the only reply he received was a flat stare.

"Tch, fine!" Shinn yelled, throwing up his hands.

Exasperated, he plopped down on the floor and buried his nose in the game's play manual. If he did not find any answers about how to end the game in there, it would at least make for an interesting read…

--

Kira had to admit, he was more than a little surprised. The idea of somehow becoming trapped inside a virtual reality game was unthinkable, unbelievable and downright insane. But even more surprising than that was the way Lacus took the situation in her stride. She had simply pursed her lips, placed a finger on her chin and nodded to herself! For a single, guilty moment, Kira caught himself considering whether she might have had anything to do with this – Athrun claimed that the mysterious, pink songstress seemed to have strange effects on machinery.

Kira shook his head. The glitches allegedly caused by Lacus were always harmless, innocent little quirks, like a Hallo randomly changing course in mid-flight to take a crack at Athrun. He could not see how Lacus could even cause something as insignificant as that. She could hardly be the source of their current predicament.

He found himself studying the blue-eyed beauty anew. At times, Kira felt like the bond between him and Lacus was so strong that they did not even need words to communicate. Then, like now, the odd occasion came along when she proved to him that there was still more to her that he had yet to discover. While Athrun had gone completely silent with worry, and he, himself, could not quell the anxiety threatening to overwhelm him, Lacus was all calm, composed tranquillity.

"It's an angel! An angel sent from Heaven!"

"Thank you, oh, thank you!"

In addition to showing next to no concern over their situation, she had spontaneously decided that they ought to venture into the ruined village to see if they could be of any help. Her healing spells were certainly coming in handy. Among the few survivors they had managed to round up, only the mayor and his family were unharmed.

"Bless you, child," an old lady rasped adoringly as her broken leg recovered in the revitalizing light that flowed from the kneeling girl's outstretched palms.

They had had to salvage the poor woman from the wreckage of a smouldering cottage, where a heavy ceiling beam had fallen and landed awkwardly across her one leg. The suffering all around had been – and in a sense, still was – agonizingly authentic. Kira had to keep reminding himself that this was just a game.

"It is nothing," Lacus assured the grateful townspeople around her, gracing the crowd with a truly angelic smile.

Kira did not blame them for mistaking her for an angel – all she needed was the wings and halo. He _was_ starting to feel a little protective with everyone fawning over her like this, though… She straightened, turning that tantalizing smile on Kira as she did, and instantly any jealous thoughts he might have had earlier, flew out of his head. Lacus would never let anything come between them, not even a crowd of adoring fans.

As a token of gratitude for saving the last few townspeople left alive after the disaster, the mayor offered them rooms in his house – incidentally the only building that had not been torched – and an evening meal. Kira had to admit, whether this was real or not, he was ravenous, and when the mayor's wife – a scrawny old woman with more than a few touches of grey in her hair – served them a home-cooked meal that smelled just like the real thing, there was no stopping him.

Athrun, on the other hand, did not give the food so much as a glance before stiffly rising from the table with the excuse that he was not feeling well. Kira knew that that was not the case. From a very young age, Kira had observed that whenever Athrun was depressed or under stress, he simply stopped eating. Back then, the very private boy would shrug it off as "nothing", or "just a tummy ache" if Kira pressed the issue enough. But he knew his best friend too well to be fooled.

He noticed Lacus following Athrun with her eyes as he left the table. She, too, knew Athrun Zala better than he might have thought.

--

Lacus had looked so worried when he excused himself from the table, but Athrun could not make himself eat. He would no doubt receive no nourishment from gaming food that did not even really exist, so what was the point of going through the motions? For some reason, he felt a little guilty as he slipped away to the room the NPCs had assigned to him. Shrugging the useless notion aside, he closed the door behind him – there was no point in being polite to people who did not exist either. He flung himself on the bed and stared at nothing, listening to the endless pattering of the rain outside. When had the downpour broken out? Was virtual rain as wet as the real thing? Would he ever feel real rainwater on his skin again?

Lacus could pretend that nothing was wrong, but he truly felt trapped. Cooping himself up inside his room was not helping, he realized. He needed some fresh air. A chance to test if you could catch a cold from gaming world rain, he thought bitterly as he turned the doorknob. Upon opening the door, he was surprised to hear a startled squeak coming through the opening. A red-haired girl wearing a frilly, pink dress stood in the doorway, clutching a tray covered with lace cloth in both hands. She was staring at him with wide, blue-grey eyes.

"Yes?" he asked, being the first to recover.

"Papa asked me to check on you," she answered in a reserved tone. "He said that you had not eaten, so I brought you a meal."

She watched him warily as she stepped into the room. She was fairly pretty, Athrun noted, except for a certain tightness about her eyes that he could not quite place. If not for that hard look in her cold, grey eyes, she would have been beautiful – with her gentle features, milk pale skin and luscious red hair that fell to her shoulders, she might have been an even match for Lacus herself.

"Thank you," he replied quietly, "but I'm really not hungry…"

"They said you would be stubborn…" the girl murmured, half to herself. She briskly set the tray down on the bedside table, removed the cloth and planted her hands on her hips. A delicious aroma wafted up from the uncovered tray, and Athrun's eyes involuntarily went to the plate containing a rather appealing stew. "Are you trying to tell me that my cooking isn't good enough for you?"

It would be terribly rude of him to decline, since she had prepared the meal especially for him. He knew this was just another character controlled by the game, but it was against Athrun's nature to be discourteous to a girl. With a defeated sigh, he sat down to eat. He was pleasantly surprised when it tasted better than anything he had eaten in a very long time. In fact, it reminded him of the kind of food Kira's mother would always prepare…

He had not taken more than two bites when he started feeling tired. The tiredness, mixed in with a pang of nostalgia, made him feel almost drowsy. After the fifth mouthful, he had to blink rapidly to clear his vision.

He realized that she was talking to someone. Not to him – he surely would have noticed if she had been talking to him… right?

"…put in too much?"

"It's fine, as long as he doesn't…"

"…come, won't they?"

Frowning, Athrun strained to keep his attention on the conversation carrying on above him, but his mind failed to register more than a few snatches. Come to think of it, he was spread-eagled on the bed. _Strange…_ He could not remember lying down.

"…already sent word to the…"

"…what if his friends…"

He tried to speak, but, to his horror, found that he had been gagged with the piece of lace cloth that had once covered the tray! He tried to sit up, but that was equally impossible – his hands and feet were tied to the bedposts! He struggled feebly against the bonds that held him. Whatever they had drugged him with, it had been strong stuff – his senses were slowly returning, but he was still weak as a kitten.

"He's awake!"

That last had been a panic-stricken squeal coming from the redhead. She stood next to her father, the mayor, wringing her hands. The mayor's round face glistened with a sheen of nervous perspiration. The pair did not look like the kind of people who would normally kidnap someone. In fact, Athrun could see genuine fear in their eyes. Whether their fear was for him waking up, or for being discovered doing something like this, he could not tell.

Why were they doing this to him? He tried to convey the question to them through his eyes, but that only seemed to aggravate his captors.

"Quick! Give him another dose," the old man urged his daughter in a shaky voice. "Hurry, child!"

"Yes, Papa!" she all but shrilled.

She darted to the bedside table and fumbled with a red pottery jar that had not been there before. It rattled in her trembling hands as she scooped heaped spoonfuls of a darkish powder into a bowl. Athrun could do nothing but watch in horror as she added water from a pitcher to the sinister concoction, stirred it fervently and then dipped a piece of clean cloth into the mixture.

His thoughts spun in panicky circles as she began to undo the knot on his gag. As soon as the thing came off, he would scream – loud enough for someone to hear him! But the moment he opened his mouth, she would stuff the drug down his throat, and he would lose consciousness again. Hastily, he reconsidered his options.

She removed the gag from his mouth and he clamped his jaw shut like his life depended on it – it probably did. He resisted her valiantly, but the drug still ran thick in his system, impairing his efforts.

Just when he thought it was all over, the door banged open.

--

Kira tried to push past the mayor's clucking wife. She was going on about how Athrun should not be disturbed, for he supposedly had a severe headache, and how her daughter would see his hurt soothed, and how everything would be all right if Kira just did not trouble the young prince.

"Wait, did you say 'prince'?" Kira asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.

No one around here was supposed to know that Athrun's character was royalty. In fact, the only way _Kira_ knew was because of the hint dropped in his friend's profile. That, and the words of _that man_ who had attacked them. Somehow, Kira did not think the greying old lady had read Athrun's profile. He shivered at the other possibility.

The woman opened her mouth to argue, but nothing more than a strangled garbling noise came out as Kira picked her up firmly with both hands and carefully placed her out of his way. He shoved the door open. With Lacus on his heels, he entered the room, the old woman's wordless cries of protest following them inside.

He was not sure what he had expected, but what he saw shocked him.

Athrun was lying outstretched on the bed, his wrists and ankles tied to the bedposts with coarse twines of rope. The mayor's daughter was wrestling with the tied up boy, trying to press a piece of cloth into his mouth. Her father, who was trying to help her by holding Athrun's head still, looked up and turned a palette's worth of shades paler when he saw Kira and Lacus in the doorway. He immediately backed away, but his daughter was still trying to gag Athrun.

"Stop this at once!" Lacus said in that commanding tone of hers.

When the young redhead still refused to heed her, she stepped forward and slapped the girl's face – not just a little smack, a full-armed slap! Kira had no idea Lacus could be so… violent! Well, they were trying to hurt Athrun, and Lacus had always been a little protective of her former fiancée…

_Stop thinking jealous thoughts!_ Kira chastised himself firmly.

She had every right to be concerned for Athrun's safety, especially considering the kind of predicament he was in at the moment! There was no time for feeling guilty, though. Lacus's eyebrows shot up in bewildered recognition as she got her first good look at the other girl's face.

"Get away from me!" the redhead shrieked in a painfully familiar voice. "Don't touch me, you filthy Coordinator!"

She turned to run away and, as if in slow-motion, her eyes met Kira's. Pale blue-grey eyes set in a face that was beautiful despite the untamed fear and revulsion that crumpled her features. Her expression softened as she recognized him.

"Kira!" she whimpered.

He felt his chest contract painfully, as though someone's fist was closing on his heart.

"Fllay…" came his hoarse reply.

--

Kira looked on the verge of collapse.

Athrun had no idea what the girl Fllay had looked like, but he had heard enough bits and pieces from Kira, Lacus and Cagalli respectively to gather that Kira had been in love with her. He remembered a desperate mobile suit battle somewhere near the end of the first war. His childhood friend was normally a calm and controlled pilot, but Kira had chased after her escape pod like a maniac, crying that he needed to protect her. Compassion for his best friend welled up inside him.

How many times since then had Athrun experienced that same kind of grief himself – the helplessness of being unable to protect the ones he loved…? Athrun did not think that anything he had gone through had ended quite as bitterly as Kira's instance with Fllay had, though. The two had been separated cruelly by the blaze of the battlefield, remaining forever unable to resolve the conflicts between them.

But why was the girl here, inside a virtual reality game?

Now that he thought about it, what kind of game allowed its players to be knocked out, tied up and almost kidnapped? He would certainly not classify that as safe, enjoyable entertainment… Something sinister was happening inside this game. He could almost sense its threatening presence growing.

"Please, we had no choice!" Fllay's father finally spoke up when no one else in the room dared to move. "You have to understand! We never meant to hurt him!"

Out of the blue, he had gained a floating nametag that identified him as 'George Allster'. Was it Athrun's imagination, or did the man suddenly look different? He could have sworn the man had had a bald spot. It might have been the drug's influence, but somehow the guy did not seem quite as chubby as Athrun remembered him either. _Just what is going on here?_

Lacus, who had been silent the entire time, darted a concerned look in Kira's direction before regarding the flustered NPC with a stern gaze.

"Would you care to explain your intentions, then, kind sir?" Lacus asked frostily.

Somehow, she managed to sound perfectly polite and relentlessly accusing at the same time. Fllay's father sagged visibly as the pink-haired beauty pinned him with a strict frown.

"All right…" he sighed. He took several deep breaths, but could not seem to pluck up the nerve to speak.

"I am listening," Lacus encouraged him, reaching over to free Athrun.

Just as she began untying the ropes, Fllay flung herself at Lacus and started clawing at her wildly. Alarmed, Athrun noticed blood trickles appearing in the slight furrows the rabid girl's nails were making on Lacus's smooth skin. This was a game! Attacks were not supposed to draw blood, no matter how insignificant a scratch they made! How much of this was real?

"No! You can't let him go!" she screeched. Kira snapped out of his trance and restrained the violently kicking and screaming girl from behind. "No, please! You can't! They're going to kill Papa! They'll kill Papa!"

"Fllay, please...!" was all Kira could get out.

The hysterical girl's pleas trailed off into incoherent babbling as her limbs became limp and she slumped against Kira's chest. Despite what they had done to him, Athrun could not help feeling sorry for her. There had to be a sound reason for innocent townspeople like them to try and kidnap him. What could have driven them to such extremes? Athrun watched sadly as she kept sobbing her heart out, with Kira providing the only support that was keeping her upright. She seemed so real… Just how much of this place was real?

As Lacus resumed undoing his bonds, he winced at a stinging pain shooting up through his arms – the thick ropes had left chafe marks on his wrists and they, too, were bleeding. This was a game… They were not supposed to feel any pain! How much of this _was_ still a game!? He sat up and took a deep breath to steady himself. _Don't think about it!_ he told himself firmly.

"Just what is going on here?" he asked when he finally found his voice.

Still clutching Kira's shirt tightly, Fllay looked up and glared so hard at Athrun that the hatred in her eyes made him stagger.

"This is all your fault!" she hissed, the anguish plain on her face. "It's because you won't go back to the palace and do what you're told! Now everyone is dead because of you!"

"Everyone is dead because of… me?" he asked numbly.

He could hear blood rushing in his ears, feel it drain from his face.

"That man with the mask came looking for _you_!" she yelled, her eyes narrowed as she tried to hold back the pain breaking her heart. "He accused us of hiding you! We told him the truth, but he still burned our town to the ground! Innocent people died because of _you_! Good men, women, even the children!"

"…children…?" Athrun repeated faintly.

"And now that you've escaped, he will know! He will know and he'll come back! And then he'll kill Papa!" she sobbed brokenly.

"Fllay…" Kira tried again, in vain.

"I hate you!" Fllay screamed at Athrun with all the force she could muster. "Go back to hell where you came from, you monster!"

Athrun felt a hand on his shoulder. Maybe it was Lacus. He could not be sure. The only thing he could think of was the sight of those charred bodies his eyes had so desperately tried to avoid upon first entering the village. Some of them had been too small to be adults…

…_your father requires your presence…_

…_return to the palace immediately…_

…_bring you back by any means necessary…_

Athrun squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head, trying to silence the sadistic voice echoing through his mind, but it would not go away. The carnage… The suffering… The death… _By any means necessary!_ All of it was his fault.

--

Lacus touched Athrun's arm, but she might as well have been touching the bedpost for all the reaction she got out of him. She purposefully refrained from reaching for the scratches on her cheek, but they were itching fiercely. She had never expected a game to go this far…

Thinking about it, she realized that, ever since _that man_ had attacked them, she had sensed a sort of dread building in the atmosphere. It had begun so insubstantially that she had barely noticed it at first. But it had never stopped growing in intensity, almost as if some malicious presence was gradually forcing itself into their surroundings the longer they remained here in the game world. By the time she had laid eyes on the razed village, the feeling was so strong that she had nearly fainted.

Now, she looked at the two helpless boys who had fallen prey to the wicked whims of this spiteful game from one to the other. Kira was clutching Fllay to his chest like a child who had found a secret treasure he was afraid someone would take from him at any moment. Athrun was staring at nothing, his eyes blank and his expression distraught – the hysterical redhead's thoughtless words had struck deep into his heart. Seeing them like this made a severe anger bubble up in Lacus's heart. And at the root of that anger, she knew, was her own helplessness.

Then, Kira looked up into her eyes and seemed to rise up from his despair.

"It's all right," he assured the weeping girl in his arms. Though he spoke to Fllay, his eyes never strayed from their lock with Lacus's. "If he comes back, we'll be here to protect you. Right?"

And his reassuring smile was aimed at Lacus alone.

She released a breath she had not realized she had been holding. Kira still loved her. Of course he did! Why had she doubted him for even a moment? He knew that this was nothing more than a cruel illusion. He was stronger than that.

"Right!" Lacus exclaimed with more enthusiasm than she would have believed just a few minutes ago.

Knowing that Kira supported her made her heart feel lighter already. Now, if only she could do the same for Athrun…

**To be continued...**


	5. Chapter 5: Into the Snare

**Author's Note:** I'm proud to report that I've finally become unstuck! Thanks so much for everyone who read, reviewed and waited patiently for slow me to get over my writer's block and finish this chapter!

**Disclaimer: Gundam SEED and all its characters belong to their respective owners.**

* * *

**Fantasy Trap**

**Chapter 05: Into the Snare**

The area was surprisingly dry, considering the previous night's downpour. But she supposed that was to be expected from a video game. Kira had suggested they evacuate all of the villagers to a safer place, but Lacus thought it was because he could no longer bear the sight of all the broken bodies and wrecked houses around the ruined town. There had been no time for a proper burial, so Lacus had whispered a silent prayer instead.

Until she realized with a start that they had also been merely a part of the game. It was a game that only revolved around its three party members, so the victims had probably never even been alive! It was difficult not to confuse fantasy with reality, especially since the fantasy seemed so real. That was why she was so worried about Athrun. His compassionate nature and gentle heart easily succumbed to such traps and mind games.

Lacus took in the furrowed brows and dissatisfied expression of the boy next to her. She had had a long talk with Athrun as they walked though the forest, and he was mulling over her words. Some people found Athrun Zala difficult to understand, but she felt like she knew him all her life. Though he thought he could hide things from her, she was able to read him like an open book. For instance, the dissatisfied expression told her that he was angry with himself at getting himself so immersed in the game, and the furrow of his brow showed that he was thinking hard of a way out.

He opened his mouth to ask her a question, his vivid green eyes twinkling with doubt. She would be truthful with him, whatever he asked, and, once she had eliminated all his doubts, his mind would be free from this game's trap. All that was left then, was to escape from it with their bodies intact.

"Lacus," he began tentatively.

"Yes?"

Just then, she was overcome by a vast sense of imminent danger. She pulled out her staff and searched the skies. Athrun followed suit – staff in hand, he also kept an eye on the sky above them. Sure enough, her eyes pinpointed a dark patch approaching, and she knew, with a certainty that made her shiver, that _he_ was coming…

"What is it, Lacus?" Kira asked, pausing to turn around from where he was leading the townsfolk through the forest.

"He's… He's coming…" was all she could utter.

--

Athrun did not know how Lacus could even have sensed that the enemy was coming, never mind from which direction he was coming, but the moment she pulled out her pure white staff, he, too, reached for his weapon. It was not long before her foreboding became a reality.

"I can't believe you would make it so easy for me!" that dreaded voice rang from the treetops. "You may have bested me in dry, rocky terrain, but the forest is my forte!"

As the shape, cloaked in rough, brown wool, descended from above, the game no longer made a secret of the identity of Athrun's pursuer. He wore mask fashioned from ivory and decorated by carved vine patterns inlaid with emeralds. It covered the top half of his face, leaving his menacing smile bare. Loose, golden tresses peeked out from inside the cowl of his cloak.

_xXx_

_**RAWW LE KLUEZE**_

_**Class:**__ Druid_

_**Age**_**:** _328_

_**Height: **__183cm_

_**Weight: **__77kg_

_**Blood Type:**__ Unknown_

_You know little about the mysterious, masked man, except that he became your father's newly appointed advisor shortly after the death of your mother, the queen. In a short time, this strange man has convinced your father to make many, drastic changes around the palace. Among the many disturbing changes was the removal of all of your mother's possessions from the palace – from paintings of her likeness to the jewellery she had worn. Raww le Klueze rarely leaves your father's side, which made it impossible for you to confront your father about the matter in private. Hurt and confused by all of this, you chose to flee the palace for a time._

_xXx_

Athrun held up his staff in a defensive stance. This was not the benevolent commander he had once known. If anything, this person was closer to the true Raww le Klueze than the farce that resided within Athrun's memories. Whether he was real or not, Athrun was more than ready to fight this man. While the things written about him in the profile was as farfetched as either of Athrun's summoned creatures, the all too familiar ring to these twisted facts made Athrun uncomfortable. The estrangement between him and his father, his mother dead, Klueze as his father's advisor… It all had a strange echo with his true past.

"Klueze!" Kira shouted, his eyes blazing with purple fire.

Athrun did not know where he had found the time to nock five arrows, but Kira loosed the tremendous shot from his giant war bow, aiming straight for the masked man's chest. With a swipe of his hand, Klueze commanded the branches of a tall tree to swat the arrows aside.

Before the last arrow hit the ground, all hell broke loose.

Trees opened eyes in faces grown suddenly from their gnarled bark. The entire forest seemed to come to life, turning plants into hostile monsters swinging vines, roots and even leaves in every direction. Kira was loosing flurries of arrows at the oncoming hordes, pinning wild bushes and even some of the raging trees. Lacus was holding a magical barrier to protect the townspeople from the savage creatures. Athrun wondered only for a second what to do. Fire. Creatures made from wood and plants were weak against fire. He reached out for the Phoenix, and in one flaring instant, the world all around him burst into glorious flames.

Then there was silence as the surrounding forest lay strewn in ashes at his feet. The smell of wood smoke mixed with the sickly sweet fumes plant sap bubbling, hung thickly in the air.

Lacus breathed a sigh of both relief and fatigue before dropping the protective barrier that had held the renegade woodland at bay. She sank to her knees. White magic was not used in the front lines, but it certainly took its toll on the wielder. Kira was there immediately, placing a supporting arm around her delicate shoulders.

"Kira…" Lacus chirped weakly before resting her head in the crook of his arm, eyelids drooping closed from pure exhaustion.

"Oh, I haven't forgotten about you, my little Halfling friend," the masked man announced with a sinister grin, well aware that they could no longer rely on Lacus for protection. "Half the forest may be gone, but that does not make me powerless!"

As Klueze spoke, new shoots of vines sprouted up from the decimated forest graveyard. The rapidly growing plants gained thorns, and as they grew, the thorns gradually changed into vicious barbs the size of small daggers. The hungry vines hurled themselves at Lacus and Kira at a tremendous speed, but Athrun was faster. He darted between his friends and the approaching vines and twirled his staff like a fan. Waves of fire emitted from his weapon, singeing everything in his path. All that was left of the newly-sprouted vines were charred bits of thorns.

"So the royal hatchling still chooses to defy me," the man's sinister voice mocked. The glassy eyeholes of his mask seemed to glow. "You are returning to the palace, whether or not you keep up this foolishness of yours." His lips slid into a malicious grin, making for a stomach-twisting sight below that emotionless mask. "It seems I will have to teach you that the hard way!"

Athrun prepared himself to counter another attack from the masked man. He was not about to lose to a madman.

Suddenly, a shriek rose up from the group of townspeople behind them, and several of them started milling about in a panic. Involuntarily, Athrun spun to see what the commotion was about.

"Papa!" Fllay was screaming just as Athrun's eyes fell on George Allster. He was being lifted into the air by a tangle of vines. The ensnaring plants stopped when their prey was at eye-level with their masked master.

"L-Let me go! Please!" the man cried, his face going red as the vines tried to squeeze the life out of him. "P-Put me down, I beg of you!!"

"George Allster…" Klueze said in that considering tone of his, a wicked smile playing on his lips as he watched the helpless man struggle. "You have failed me, if I remember correctly. Not only that, but you also seem to have _betrayed_ me…"

"Please, Master Klueze, Papa did nothing wrong!" Fllay pleaded. "Put him down!"

"Oh?" the velvety voice purred at the redhead, glassy eyeholes shifting towards her with interest. "And why should I? I ordered him to bring the prince back and he failed. _Someone_ needs to be punished for all this."

"It— It's all _his_ fault!" she shrieked, thrusting an accusing finger at Athrun. "We tried to get him to go back to the palace, but he would not listen! Instead, he forced us to come with him into this wretched forest!"

_We were trying to help you,_ Athrun thought, a feeling of betrayal lodging in his chest. _No one ever forced you…_

"Hmmm, I could not agree more… What a disobedient child," Klueze replied, shaking his head sadly, as if Athrun truly was a mere child and he could not believe the extent of that child's stubbornness. "This whole mess certainly is his fault."

"Y-Yes!" Fllay nodded eagerly. "So you'll let Papa go and punish him instead?"

That pointing finger was still stabbing at him.

"Your words contain some truth, little girl… however, no," Klueze replied with a sour twist of his mouth. "I cannot waste my time with fools who make promises they cannot keep. This worthless wretch has begged me to spare his family if he handed me the prince in return." He turned his cold gaze on the squirming man trapped in vines. "I have spared your family, but you have not fulfilled your end of the bargain. My mercy has run out…"

The vines entangling her father grew thorns.

"M-Master Klueze, please—" he whimpered pitifully.

The poor man did not have time to scream. His eyes bulged as the barbed lengths penetrated his body. He convulsed one last time before they released him. His eyes were glazed with death even before he hit the ground like a boneless lump.

"PAPA, NO!!" Fllay's heart-wrenching cry sounded throughout the entire forest.

Athrun stared as the red-headed girl stumbled across the sea of dead leaves to reach the very still form of her father. Her body shook with unchecked sobs.

"Papa!" she cried over and over. "Papa!"

Before Athrun knew it, he was standing next to her. He did not remember moving his feet. He felt as though his own stomach had been ripped out.

"I'm sorry…" Athrun whispered.

"GET AWAY, MONSTER!!" she shrieked, clutching her dead father's body protectively, almost as if she feared Athrun might take him away. Once he backed away quietly, she fixed him with a frigid glare. "This is all your fault…" Her whispered words came out like the threatening hiss of a snake. "My Papa is dead because you're such a selfish creep!"

--

Kira watched the exchange between Fllay and his best friend with growing apprehension. He could not help feeling the painful echo of the past resurfacing in his heart. There had once been a time she had yelled at _him_ like that. The real Fllay's father had died on a sinking space ship, incinerated in an instant. Fllay had blamed Kira for his death, for Kira had not been able to save him. Now he saw the same scenario replaying itself, only this time, she had her sights set on Athrun…

_Just what kind of video game _is_ this!?_ his mind screamed. For the hundredth time, he tried to quit, but all that was left of the main menu screen was a static blur.

He saw Athrun turn away from Fllay. His friend's eyes had that distant look again, staring at nothing as he seemed to start trudging in whatever direction he happened to find himself going. Kira called out to him, but he did not respond. He could not let Athrun go off on his own, not in that state of mind! Gently, he laid down the sleeping Lacus and started after Athrun.

That was when he noticed the weighing and measuring look on the masked man's face, his glassy eyes locked on Fllay.

"Perhaps I will have my payment after all, George Allster," he murmured.

Kira did not think he was supposed to have heard. Klueze descended slowly, making a soundless landing beside the mourning redhead. He reached out a gloved hand…

"Don't you touch her!" Kira growled.

He felt the power of the Seed inside him burst to life. Everything around him seemed to slow as he lunged forward. As if by magic, a slender blade appeared in his hands. It had much the same colouring as the war bow he had held earlier. Right then, he did not care where the weapon had come from. All that mattered was stopping that man from taking Fllay. All this went through his mind in the few seconds it took him to reach the pair standing beside the body. With all the strength he possessed, he plunged the slim length of sharpened steel into Klueze's heart. Stabbing a man from behind was not the most courageous thing he had ever done, but at that moment, he could not make himself care.

"You again…!" the injured man rasped hoarsely.

Kira thought he could see raw fury glaring through the glassy holes of the mask. In an instant, Klueze was gone. Then all was quiet.

--

Lacus opened her eyes gingerly. The feeling of intense danger had subsided, but she was still reluctant to look around. It was as though a dull headache was lurking behind her eyes, and if she blinked or frowned too hard, it would come out in full, pounding force. The first thing she saw was Kira, panting heavily, clutching a long rapier in his hands – it was an elegant weapon of white and blue and red. Dimly, it reminded her of something, but she could not quite lay her finger on it.

"Kira?" she called softly.

"Lacus! You're awake!" he exclaimed, and, before she could blink, he was there to help her up. Her legs were still surprisingly wobbly, but she stood, refusing to let it show.

"What… happened?" she asked, holding her head as she cast her eyes about. The townspeople all seemed to have fled. Fllay was sitting on the grass not too far away, her shoulders shaking. Was the girl weeping? Again, Lacus swept her eyes over the scene. "Where's Athrun?"

"Athrun?" Shocked, Kira's dulled purple eyes seemed to return to their normal state. At the same time, the rapier in his hands transformed back into a war bow. So he had been using the Seed… "Lacus, we have to find him!"

"Why? What has happened?" she asked.

As Kira started to explain, she felt her heart sink…

--

His injuries stung, but if they slowed him any, he kept his steps deliberate as he blindly followed the X-marker on his minimap. Athrun was not sure how long he had been walking. Creatures had stopped to attack him along the way. The first one had nearly finished him when he half-heartedly tried to defend himself with nothing but his staff. Though he had no real desire to fight back, the Shiva and the Phoenix had appeared the moment his life points went critical. Now, as he stumbled along, they hovered about him, as if concerned. Whenever an enemy approached, they chased it off for him. He almost wished they would not. Maybe if his character was KO'd somewhere Lacus could not revive him, the game would be over. He wanted this nightmare to end.

The memory of Fllay's cold eyes, brimming with tears, yet glaring daggers at him, kept intruding on his thoughts, making him wince.

Maybe if he went back to the palace, the way he should have in the first place, Raww le Klueze would stop sacrificing innocents… The marker on his map started glowing. He was near his destination. He was not sure how the game knew where he wanted to go, but then, there were a great many things the game should not have known.

Though he had a fair idea of what he would say once he arrived – he wanted to be rid of all these nagging questions buried at the bottom of his heart – a part of him had silently hoped that he would be KO'd and somehow find himself at a 'Game Over' screen before he could reach this point. _Stop being such a selfish coward!_ he chided himself firmly. The sacrifices _would_ stop if he went back.

Finally, he stood in front of a dark, looming stone wall, tended by a pair of guards in red and gold armour. Behind that stone wall stood a palace, its white walls glittering in the morning sun. As he approached the building, he felt his summoned creatures returning. The guards moved as if to block his path, then seemed to recognize him.

"Your Highness!" one of them gasped. "Your father has been searching everywhere for you!"

"Please, come this way!" the other added keenly.

Athrun barely heard their words as they continued to flood him with formalities. He was almost disappointed when one of them healed his wounds, though relief from the pain was greater than his disappointment. He had not realized just how much he hurt until the hurt was washed away by the healing spell.

The twisting halls inside the palace were all one long blur to him, and before he had time to change his mind, he was there…

Athrun had a hollow feeling in the pit of his stomach as he approached the two oversized doors that led to the throne room. He had come all this way, thinking that doing this would make everything right, and now he was afraid of what he would find waiting for him behind those foreboding slabs of ornately carved wood. As the guards announced him, he had the strangest feeling that all this had happened before. Memories of a taller man wrenching him up to eye level by his collar, angry eyes boring holes into him, the feeling of being flung across the room and skidding across the floor so silver specks flew before his eyes, the sound of a gun being loaded, the sight of the taller man aiming the weapon straight at him…

Athrun had to drag his feet to keep them from halting. Lifting them took so much effort, it was like hiking through knee-deep mud. The doors swung open, momentarily blinding him with the shimmering radiance of all the splendour inside the throne room.

And inside that room, Athrun's worst nightmare came alive.

"Athrun," came a low growl that resounded with permanent disapproval.

He felt his knees go weak as the familiar voice grated on his ears. There was no mistaking it. _He_ was no mere NPC, and this definitely was no longer a game. The man who stood there, towering over him, was his father – his _real_ father – Patrick Zala.

"F-Father…"

Athrun's voice faltered as he was overcome by a multitude of confusing emotions cascading from the cracks in his heart, flooding his soul. The questions and accusations he had been preparing in his head were drowned out by waves of affection and respect, followed closely by a deep sympathy. On top of that came fear and hesitation, wreathed with agony and crowned with longing – a desperate need to be accepted just once, even for the most insignificant accomplishment. A small voice at the back of his mind tried to tell him that this was not real. _It's an illusion! Fight it!_ the little voice insisted. He heeded the voice and took a step back, away from the ghosts of his past.

He could escape this trap. He could use either Phoenix or Shiva's wings and just dart out the window. The guards would not expect it and they would not be able to stop him – they had taken away all his weapons and equipment.

"No one is allowed to approach the king while carrying weapons… You will have to disarm, Your Highness," one of them had said apologetically.

But even through taking his staff, the summoned creatures could not be taken away. They were a part of him as much as his arms and his legs were – closer still, they were _inside_ of him. And Kira and Lacus were still out there. They were worried about him. He was on the verge of reaching out to the Phoenix, when his father spoke in a softened tone.

"My son," he said, spreading his arms wide, "you've come back…"

Athrun's eyes widened in pure shock and bewilderment as his father approached with a warm smile and wrapped him up in a strong embrace. He stood there, staring at nothing as a single tear slipped down his cheek. The warmth, the approval he had yearned for… it was here.

"Welcome home, Athrun," his father said, his voice thick with emotion.

Athrun bravely fought back the sobs that forced to break free from his constricted chest. His body quivered with the effort of holding them, but he held, for he did not dare show weakness in front of this man. The silent trickles that managed to escape his eyes were not tears of sadness, but tears of utter relief as the years of resentment towards his father, and the inevitable self-loathing that accompanied it, was washed out of him. His father truly cared about him. Patrick Zala was _not_ a monster and he was _not_ a murderer. He was a human being who made mistakes, like any other. And above all, he was a loving father.

"It's all right, son…" the big man whispered.

Athrun's last attempts at holding back crumbled at these consoling words. He closed his eyes and pressed his face into his father's broad chest, letting the tears run freely as Patrick Zala stroked his hair soothingly.

**To be continued...**


End file.
